unsold



. 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

F. UNSOLD.

( No Model.)

1GB RINK.

No. 530,367. Patented Deo. 4, 1894..

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IGE RINK.

(No Model.)

No. 530,367. Patented Dec. 4, 1894.

FELIX UNSLD, OF MUNICH, GRMANY, ASSIGNOR TO JOSEPH FISI-IBURN, OF WESTMINSVTER, ENGLAND.

ICE-RINK.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 530,367, dated December 4, 1894.

Application tiled May 12, 1894. Serial No. 511,018. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern;`

Be it known that I, FELIX UNsLD, a sub` ject of the Emperor of Germany, residing `at Munich, Bavaria, Germany, have invented new and useful Improvements in and Relat ing to Ice-Rinks, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the construction of ice rinks for skating purposes.

In constructing and maintaining a sheet ice for an ice rink'it is necessary to abstractan amount offheat considerably in excess of that required to counteract the heat of the atmosphere in contact with the water or ice surface, this excess being due, among other causes, to the necessitygforlabsorbing the heat conducted to the ice from the earth, by the floor or supports on which the sheet of ice is carried. Furthermore, the` expansion and contraction of this floor, or of these supports have frequently caused difficulty, and have resulted in their fracture, or in that of the" sheet of ice.

Now the objects of myinvention are to reduce the power necessary for the formation and maintenance of the sheet ofice and of its surface by thoroughly insulating the iioor from the earth; and to lessen the risk of fracture by providing for the ready expansion and contraction of the ioor and of the sheet of ice independently.

To enable my invention to be fully understood I will describe the same by reference to the accompanying drawings, in Which-- Figure l is a plan of the floor for anice rink constructed according to my invention; and Fig. 2 is a Vertical section of the same. Figs. 3 and 4 are sectional views at right angles to each other showing the means for permitting of the expansion and contraction of the floor, the said views being drawn to an enlarged scale. Figs. 5 and 6 are a plan and vertical section respectively showing the arrangement of the pipes through which the freezing mixture is passed; and Figs. 7 and 8 are longitudinal and transverse sections respectively, illustrating the construction of an elastic joint which I advantageously use for the said pipes.

a. is the floor of the rink which is formed of boards (Wood being a good non-conductor of heat), the said boards being carried upon joistsy or girders b preferably of ydouble channel or H-s`ection (as shown most clearly in Fig. 4) supported upon piers or pillars "c, c, built up from the earth, thus constituting a chamber or chambers ol, d beneath the said floor. Plates of Wood c', c having upon them sheets 02,02 of felt, or similar elastic nonconducting material, are shown as being placed on top of the piers or pillars and under the girders in order to assist in preventing heat from being conducted through the pillars to the girders and so to the floor. v

The chamber or chambers is or are of such depth that it or they can be used for storage of perishable goods or of ice, or for other similar purposes where a low temperature is required. AThe planks e, e of which my Hoor is composed are preferably formed` of good sound Wood arranged so that the grain of the Wood is lengthwise of the plank. These planks are laid with longitudinal spaces between them so as to permit of the independent expansion of the said planks in the direction of their width, or across the grain of the wood.

To retain the planks e, ein position and yet permit of any movement of expansion or contraction, I Iix them as follows, that is to say, each plank is at one edge rigidly secured to the girders by bolts f, f, f while the other edge is fastened by means of clips g, g which are bolted to the planks and engage beneath the adjacent Iianges of the girders, as shown in Figs. l and 4.. This construction allows each plank to expand and contract independently.

In order to retain the water before it is frozen upon the iioor ait is necessary to lill in the spaces between the planks e, e with some resilient material which will readily yield, such, for instance, as hemp or tow or pitch melted and run in while hot and to tix around the edges of the floor a curb h which, with the licor, constitutes a basin for retaining the water to be frozen.

t, are the pipes or tubes through which the freezing mixture is circulated, these being .arranged over the floor a. The lengths of pipe are advantageously provided with flanges j, 7' at the ends which rest on the Wood ioor of IOC A pipe o, these pipes being in communication the rink, these flanges having packing-rings 7c of elastic material placed between them and being constructed so as to be clipped together, compressing the elastic material and thus forming the liquid-tight joints of the said pipes. Bolts fm, m are provided to connect the lianges which are advantageouslyL made flat upon one side as shown so as .toY

lessen the thickness of the sheet of ice to be originally constructed and afterward maintained.

The pipes t', i are not continuous over the whole surface to be frozen, but are arranged; in sections, being continuous, however, forA each section. As shown in Fig. 5, each secv tion is connected at one end to a main iow-l pipe fn, and at the other end to a main return with the machinery, or apparatus, for producing and maintaining the low temperature of the freezing mixture. The length of pipe in each section must be such that the freez- Y, ing mixture returning to the main return pipe o after flowing through the length of the'pipe in the section shall only have its temperature reduced by afew degrees, say, for instance, 5 i Fahrenheit or even less below that ofthe mix Hoor gives a certain amount of elasticity to i the sheet of ice, which renders a fall upon it! much less serious than a similar fall upon a 4o sheet of -ice supported only upon a rigid floor.

Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is- 1. An ice rink having a chamber or chambers beneath the iloor which may be used for storage purposes vbut which will insulate the ice from the earth and thereby prevent the I conduction of the heat of the latter to theice,

the said floor being constructed of planks laid parallel with spaces between them and each rigidly secured t-o the supporting girders or joists at one edge only and loosely fastened thereto at the other edge so as to allow of'expansion and contraction with variations of temperature, the spaces -between the said planks being lled or calked with hemp, tow or pitchor other resilient material which will allow of the expansionand contractionof the planks all substantially as, `and for the purposes, described.

2. The combination, in an ice skating rink oor, of joists,planks.supported upon the said joists and laid with spaces between them, the said planks being rigidly secured at one edge only and a yiilling of resilient material in the saidspaces ,substantially as, and for the purposes, described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name :in the presence of .two wit- .nesses FELIX UNsLD.

Witnesses:

GG. DORNER,

Architect. AUG. WETzsTEI-N. 

